


Jelly Spoons

by NedrynWrites



Category: Dragon Quest Builders (Video Games), Dragon Quest Series
Genre: Cuddling & Snuggling, Huddling For Warmth, Mute Builder (Dragon Quest Builders 2), Other, Sign Language, spoilers for entire game
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-22
Updated: 2020-01-22
Packaged: 2021-02-27 05:53:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,127
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22362142
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NedrynWrites/pseuds/NedrynWrites
Summary: After the events at [spoiler] are over, Malroth and Jelly Bean return to the Cerulean Steppe to finish the castle.It's cold.
Relationships: Builder/Malroth (Dragon Quest Builders 2)
Comments: 11
Kudos: 57





	Jelly Spoons

**Author's Note:**

> Jelly Bean is mute and uses sign language, depicted within apostrophes. 
> 
> Rated Teen for three (3) uses of the word "ass" and a very very mild sexual implication. 
> 
> Big thanks to omgitsaddyc for betaing this, and couvina for the title and Malroth's name sign!

It was cold in the Cerulean Steppe. Remembering what happened the  _ last _ time the chill permeated Malroth’s every move, colder still. 

And yet, Lulu was all too fond of the location’s castle. And, Malroth supposed, the people too. 

If it were up to Malroth, he’d be content to stay in the warm cottage looking over green fields forever. Why should he visit the woman who was always trying to undermine him? Why couldn’t  _ she _ visit _ them? _

But Lulu had insisted the trio get together regularly, and Jelly was far too complacent for their own good. It would seem the two couldn’t avoid the snow forever. 

“J.B.! Mal!” An excited squeal came from a direction Malroth couldn’t discern, and his vision was blocked by an ungodly amount of pink less than a moment later as Lulu flung herself at the two. 

Jelly caught the brunt of the force, and she squeezed them so tight Malroth would have been worried, had they not thoroughly kicked his ass not much more than a week before. Malroth was next to face the wrath better known as a Lulu hug. He tried not to wince as his back, no longer home to the strength of a god, made a very human crunch. 

Lulu dragged the two through the halls of “her” castle, eagerly pointing out every little change to the decor that had happened since Jelly was last there. Everyone had pitched in to set up a small dining hall, and the enormous main corridor, apparently empty as they left it, was full of training yards and open-plan workshops. 

Malroth was beyond impressed at the idea that this place was built singlehandedly. But when he found out most of the framework was done by Moonbrooke’s ex-residents, he was more relieved. And a bit flattered, when he found out Jelly had been far too upset to do much more than a few half-assed bedrooms. 

Despite the adjustments since, the downtrodden nature of its creator was obvious everywhere, should one know where to look. 

A quick glance to Jelly told him that they could see it too. Their eyes shot back and forth behind the frames of their glasses. He could see that spark, the one he’d seen so many times. It would kindle into a raging inferno, and they wouldn’t stop until the place was unrecognizable in comparison to the sad state it was in now. 

The first step, as it turned out, was remaking the second floor from the stairs up. 

Lulu kicked up a fuss when they leveled her bedroom, but the grumbling stopped fast when she saw what it was turning into. With more than half the day left after that was completed, Jelly turned to the other side of the throne room and made another bedroom. It was similar to Lulu’s, but in a sense of layout alone. It certainly wasn’t to her tastes, Malroth thought, more soothingly familiar, like- 

‘Fight?’ Signed with M’s rather than S’s, it was his name. Jelly waved. ‘Horns.’ Another wave. ‘M-A-L-R-O-T-H. Is anyone in there?’ 

“Huh?” Jelly stopped waving at him, wearing a sneer that told him he’d never have seen the end of it had he spaced out any longer. “What do you need, Jell?” 

They gestured to a chair they’d pulled from their seemingly endless backpack, then draped two swathes of fabric over the back. ‘Which color do you prefer?’ 

_ Oh, _ Malroth realized, _ this room is for us. _

It might be unusual for one to add a guest room for themself onto someone else’s house, but Jelly wasn’t a usual person. And in their defense, they’d constructed most of the buildings on the entire island themself. It didn’t seem that anyone was too bothered about personal space, where they were concerned. 

The room was finished almost as quickly as the first. Jelly asked Malroth’s opinion on a few more things throughout the afternoon, but they pretty much had his taste down. Compared to the construction of their shared home back in the Green Gardens, this one little room took no time at all. 

It was a serviceable place to stay while Jelly turned the castle upside-down, tailored to combine the pair’s unique tastes while still being relatively minimalistic. There was only one problem. 

It was colder than a powie yowie’s ass cheek. 

Jelly seemed fine - or, at least as well as they were when they’d first arrived in Moonbrooke. They’d gotten a fire going, but the room wasn’t yet well insulated, and they didn’t seem too worried about the cold. 

It occurred to Malroth, then, that it was probably the dragon that had allowed him to run around near shirtless in the snow before. 

Not wanting to bother Jelly as they laid the finishing touches to the exterior, Malroth stripped the bed of as many blankets as he could get away with. Near the fire, he buried himself in the heap of fabric and waited for night to fall. 

Jelly returned late as always, shivering despite the multiple layers they wore. They stretched their arms over their head with a pained groan. 

“Long day?” Malroth drawled. 

They nodded, and stretched forward, then back. 

“Went too long again, huh?” They paused, then nodded sheepishly. “Herbs aren’t gonna save your ribs forever, you know.” 

Lips twisted down, they locked their eyes to the floor. 

“Just…” Malroth sighed, untangling himself from the blankets. “Just don’t overdo it, okay? I’ll clear out. Knock on the door when you’re done getting changed. I’ll be right outside if you need me.” 

If the bedroom was a little cold, the hallway turned Malroth’s very blood to ice. He shivered, rubbing his arms, wishing he hadn’t spoiled himself with the blankets and the fire. He almost missed the knock over the sound of his chattering teeth. 

The second the door was open, he made a beeline to the fire, standing close enough that it was a wonder he didn’t get singed. He must have looked pathetic. 

He turned at the sound of footsteps, expecting Jelly to be there with a joke at his expense. Instead, he found himself wrapped up in all of the blankets they could carry in one trip. 

He must have  _ really _ looked pathetic. 

“Sorry,” he mumbled, muffled against a fluffy comforter, “I’ll probably need to go home until you’re done up here.” 

Their face fell. ‘Is there a way I can convince you to stay?’ 

Malroth was grateful that his pleased expression stayed hidden, buried as he was. Jelly was more honest about everything now, quick to say whatever words were in their head. They didn’t want a repeat of the time they didn’t get the chance. 

“Not unless you can  _ build _ the cold away,” he said, knowing full well all it would take would be them asking again. 

Jelly got that faraway look in their eyes, and Malroth could practically hear the gears turning. He hardly had enough time to wonder what kind of invention they could be dreaming up this time before their eyes were coming back into focus. But instead of that smug, self-satisfied look they usually had, they looked… embarrassed? 

‘We could spoon,’ they signed. 

That made no sense to Malroth. “They have spoons down in the kitchen,” he said, “but how would that help?” 

They stood there catching flies for a concerning amount of time before falling about in silent giggles. ‘I meant,’ their eyes still squinted in mirth, ‘cuddle.’ 

Malroth scowled. “Those words aren’t anything alike. How was I supposed to know that?” 

‘Spooning is a type of cuddling.’ When that left him even more confused, Jelly dug in their bag and brought out two wooden spoons. 

“Packrat,” Malroth mumbled. Jelly shot him a dirty look. 

They held one out, then stacked the other behind it. Malroth looked back and forth between the spoons and their face, trying to figure out how spoons and cuddling related. And just as much, trying to figure out how anything about cuddling could possibly relate to the two of them. 

_ ‘We could spoon.’  _

_ ‘Spooning is a type of cuddling.’  _

_ What. _

Neither was the touchy type. A good hand slap every now and then, that was all they ever needed. They didn’t hug. Certainly didn’t  _ cuddle. _ At least, Malroth  _ thought. _ And now Jelly was suggesting it like they’d suggest they have pancakes rather than toast. 

Maybe it wasn’t as big a deal as Malroth was making it out to be. Lulu hugged everyone, for every little thing. Perhaps she snuggled up with everyone, too. It didn’t have to mean anything. 

But the thought of Jelly doing that with anyone else made Malroth feel weird. 

He zoned back in to Jelly waving their hands in front of his face. ‘Did I break you?’ they asked. They looked genuinely worried. 

“What? No! I could spoon the heck out of you any day of the week, no problem.” 

Malroth didn’t realize it until their eyes went wide, but their face was reflecting the red color of the carpet a lot. He hoped it wasn’t the same for him. If he was as spacey as they were, he’d think it looked like a blush. 

He tilted his head. “So… how, exactly?” 

They ran a hand through their hair with a sigh, seemingly not noticing how it pulled even more curly strands loose from their messy ponytail. Actually, that seemed like a weird thing for Malroth to fixate on. He quickly adjusted his gaze back to their face, waiting for what they were about to say. 

‘You’re making it a competition, even though you didn’t even know what it was a few minutes ago?’ Their smile was soft, and it did confusing things to Malroth’s brain. ‘That’s so like you.’ 

“Yeah? Well, I can’t beat you if I don’t know what I’m doing. C’mon, teach me.” 

They doubled over with genuine laughter. Their face appeared to have taken on more of the carpet’s shade, but it was probably just the angle. 

They gestured for him to follow. ‘I’ll show you.’ 

Malroth opened his mouth to ask what Jelly meant by  _ “showing” _ him, but then they started gathering up blankets off the floor. Not wanting to interrupt, he hopped up to help. 

Jelly was normally ridiculously particular about the bed being made. So when they flopped it all down in a barely-organized mess and crawled in, Malroth knew something was off. 

Maybe it  _ was _ a big deal. 

They lifted the opposite corner for him to get in, so casually that it could be mistaken for any other night. The two always shared a bed out of habit; with the limited space and, often, resources during so many of their travels, it was only natural. Still, they never got  _ close. _

Malroth laid down stiffly. It was cold, he reasoned, there was no other cause for his posture. He started shivering immediately, after all. While the blankets were still warm from proximity to the fire, the mattress very much was not. 

A warm hand met his elbow and he almost shot up like a startled cat. 

With a few insistent shoves, followed by yanks on his shirt to pull him away from the edge, he found himself on his side facing away from Jelly. This felt like the opposite of cuddling. 

Where gravity would have normally pulled the blankets between them down, there was a cold air space between them under the covers. Malroth realized, after another startling touch, that it was because Jelly was laying much closer than they usually did. 

He held his breath as Jelly settled in. One arm slid across his side until it was splayed loosely over his waist, while the other wormed between his neck and the pillow. They brought their stomach to meet his back, and it had more give than what Malroth thought he saw under their baggy clothing. Not that he was spending an inappropriate amount of time trying to figure out what was there. That would be ridiculous. 

It didn’t feel  _ that _ unusual. Just a softer version of a Lulu hug. If a Lulu hug was warm, comfortable, with someone he was in love with, and more soothing than the sweetest lullaby. 

Wait. 

Back up. 

_ What’s a lullaby? _

His brain scrambled for clues. It must have  _ something _ to do with falling asleep, but he was drawing a blank. He decided to just ask Jelly in the morning. He could already hear the kitten snores that they made as they started to drop off, and if he didn’t fall asleep now he’d be kept up all night by the thunderous rumbling of their deep sleep. 

Malroth was awakened in the middle of the night by a knee to the back. 

Like another blow, a realization hit him out of nowhere. 

_ In love?! _

**Author's Note:**

> Several hours later edit: "spoon" in regards to cuddling is signed slightly different to the silverware version (thank you sm cou for checking for me), it sounds like it's signed "spoon" followed by "cuddle"   
> Buuut for the sake of this fic let's pretend that Malroth missed the "cuddle" part entirely the first time, haha. 
> 
> As always, if you liked it, please drop a kudos, or a comment if you're feeling brave! Even a smiley face to let me know you enjoyed it would make me very happy!  
> Please note that I have a beta, and do not wish to receive concrit from commenters at this time. Thank you for understanding ♡
> 
> [Tumblr](https://nedrynwrites.tumblr.com/)  
> Feel free to comment/message me if you have questions! I love talking to you!


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